The Bookening

Fear is the mind-killer. Or is it this novel? One of our fearless trio might want to argue that. But two of us really liked it. WHO CAN THAT BE? AND WHAT EVIDENCE WILL THEY BRING? Like it or lump it, there's a reason why Dune is one of the seminal works of twentieth century sc-fi myth-making. And our heroes are figuring out why. Will Jake tie it to Star Wars? Will Nathan describe the plots of 1095...

This Giving Tuesday support great works of awesomeness like the Bookening RIGHT HERE! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

BRANDON IS AN IRISH POET. Happy Thanksgiving. In today's minisode, Nathan discusses Thanksgiving with newly published Irish poet, Brandon.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Is it true that women make the best party members? What did Orwell get wrong about sexual politics and the politics of sex? Is the character of Julia plausible? Is this book sexist? Is it good in general? Obviously, it's a good bit of political prophecy, but is it a good, y'know, novel?  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Was George Orwell a great prophet, or even a good one? Did he see the future of society accurately, or not so much? Those are the very issues that The Bookening is figuring out in this very episode, our second in a series on 1984. Our heroes talk about historical revisionism, doublespeak, all that good stuff. Fun times, fun times.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen..." This is the episode in which we provide much needed context for George Orwell's 1984, a novel that may or may not have been prophetic about some things, maybe. Not gonna lie, this episode went a little crazy, as long time listeners will know does occur from time to time on our show. But we had fun and learned a few thing...

Patricia Highsmith was "the queen of unease," a Hitchcockian writer not of horror, but suspense and disquietude. Our heroes round out Spooktober discussing her best short story,  "When the Fleet was in at Mobile." Happy Halloween!  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Today we're talking about a bizarre piece of weird fiction, one of the most popular ones from the last twenty years. Not gory, not grisly exactly, but strange and unsettling-- "Singing My Sister Down", by Margo Lanagan.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

"All right, I’ll tell you why the Girl gives me the creeps. Why I can’t stand to go downtown and see the mob slavering up at her on the tower, with that pop bottle or pack of cigarettes or whatever it is beside her. Why I hate to look at magazines any more because I know she’ll turn up somewhere in a brassiere or a bubble bath. Why I don’t like to think of millions of Americans drinking in that po...

' "Perhaps you've heard of the Packerhaus Method," she said. "Perhaps you've heard of it?"' Spooktober continues with a discussion of a very weird short story "The Packerhaus Method" and its author, Gene Wolfe, the Herman Melville, or James Joyce, of fantastic fiction. The best author you've never heard of. Music: "Signs In The Fields" by Cinematicwaves, licensed by a Creative Commons 3.0 license....

"TRUE! --nervous --very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses --not destroyed --not dulled them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily --how calmly I can tell you the whole story." O...

This month, we will be reading five tales of terror (one each Tuesday and Wednesday, until the end of October), and in this mini-sode we introduce them so you can read along, should you so perspire, er, desire. They include "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe, "The Packerhaus Method" by Gene Wolfe, "The Girl with Hungry Eyes" by Fritz Leiber, "Singing My Sister Down" by Margo Lanagan, and "Wh...

Want to be able to define structuralism, deconstruction, semiotics, New Criticism, New Historicism, and more?  Than this is the episode for you! We're tracing the modern history of literary theory, and defining the major movies. By the end, you'll know what's good, what's bad, and what's just weird. And you'll hear a quote from Barthes's 'Death of the Author'! Yay!  ★ Support this podcast on Patre...

How do you make a kid love literature? Are some of them just not cut out for it? What sorts of things should students be looking for in a book or poem or story? How does a teacher guide them toward said things? How do you teach a story or poem about something kids haven't experienced yet? How do you give them an ear for style? In last week's episode on teaching literature, our heroes gave a more g...

SORRY FOR THE AUDIO QUALITY. IT IS EXPLAINED IN THE EPISODE. In this impromptu episode, we talk about what separates a good teacher from a bad one, and how you can control a classroom and impart delicious knowledge to kids and people everywhere.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

In our new mini-series, learn to throw around words like "deconstruction", "post-colonialism", "semiotics", etc. with the best of them.  Terms like these are easy to mock and equally easy to venerate. They're also easy to be intimidated by. Is there anything good that's come out of academic literary theory? What do all those fancy schmancy words mean anyway? Our heroes begin a journey through the...

In which we conclude our discussion of The Lord of the Rings by talking about Book 6, the final part of The Return of the King and of the series as a whole. Tolkien manages to not kill off any of the major good guys ... and yet there's a real price to be paid for standing up to the ultimate evil. Our heroes talk a lot about that, and everything that happens after the ring is destroyed, and why it...

Is book 5 of Lord of the Rings actually the worst of the lot (on a gradation of greatness, obviously)? Our heroes argue about that, and revise some of their previous opinions on Eowyn, and talk about what makes a great inspiring speech when you're leading men into battle, and why Aragorn's speech in the movie version was stupid. AND MORE.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Our heroes dig into one of the great novels of the 21st century. Or is it? Listen to find out.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Are you ready for Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguru, one of the novels that appears on everyone's list of the best of the 21st century (usually in 1st place, or at least in the top 10)? Our heroes dive in, providing much needed context on Ishiguru and the type of fiction that this is. Trying not to say too much here, spoilers definitely included in the episode.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Did Shakespeare actually have a relatively small vocabulary? Yes he did, and we talk about why that matters in our third episode on the The War of the Roses plays. We also talk about why Shakespeare seemed to have such a chip on his shoulder about women in power, when he was in fact writing plays for a Queen who was very much in power. What was the deal with that? And how did our heroes like Serie...

What exactly was the War of the Roses? Who was on what side? Why? What happened? The Bookening attempts to make sense of all this complicated English history before they read the rest of the William Shakespeare's plays on the subject.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

What is it that makes Shakespeare so darn great? It's time for The Bookening to discuss the immortal bard again! So our heroes are talking about William Shakespeare and providing some context for The Hollow Crown, which is the BBC adaptation of Henry VI, Parts 1, 2, and 3. Plus Richard III. We'll be back next week with more historical context for The War of the Roses.  ★ Support this podcast on Pa...

Was J.R.R. Tolkien a racist? The answer is not a simple yes or no. So the Bookening is devoting an entire episode to the issue. Listen to it. It's Thought Christmas, y'all! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Who is the greatest monster in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien? What makes a good monster anyway? What does Gollum have to teach us about addiction? Is Gollum an entirely original character or does he have his roots in mythology somewhere? The Bookening answers all those questions and more as it considers the Frodo and Sam section of The Two Towers.  ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★